diff --git a/cmd/aws/batch/config.go b/cmd/aws/batch/config.go
index af0ae69cb..39f1190ac 100644
--- a/cmd/aws/batch/config.go
+++ b/cmd/aws/batch/config.go
@@ -170,7 +170,7 @@ func DefaultConfig() Config {
 	c.Funnel.DynamoDB.TableBasename = "funnel"
 	c.Funnel.DynamoDB.Region = ""
 	c.Funnel.Worker.WorkDir = "/opt/funnel-work-dir"
-	c.Funnel.Worker.LogUpdateRate = time.Minute * 5
+	c.Funnel.Worker.LogUpdateRate = config.Duration(time.Minute * 5)
 	c.Funnel.Worker.LogTailSize = 10000
 
 	return c
diff --git a/cmd/util/flags.go b/cmd/util/flags.go
index 3be4176fb..628f0defe 100644
--- a/cmd/util/flags.go
+++ b/cmd/util/flags.go
@@ -76,7 +76,7 @@ func serverFlags(flagConf *config.Config) *pflag.FlagSet {
 	f.StringVar(&flagConf.Server.HTTPPort, "Server.HTTPPort", flagConf.Server.HTTPPort, "HTTP Port")
 	f.StringVar(&flagConf.Server.RPCPort, "Server.RPCPort", flagConf.Server.RPCPort, "RPC Port")
 	f.StringVar(&flagConf.Server.ServiceName, "Server.ServiceName", flagConf.Server.ServiceName, "Host name or IP")
-	f.DurationVar(&flagConf.Server.RPCClientTimeout, "Server.RPCClientTimeout", flagConf.Server.RPCClientTimeout, "Request timeout for RPC client connections")
+	f.Var(flagConf.Server.RPCClientTimeout, "Server.RPCClientTimeout", "Request timeout for RPC client connections")
 	f.UintVar(&flagConf.Server.RPCClientMaxRetries, "Server.RPCClientMaxRetries", flagConf.Server.RPCClientMaxRetries, "Maximum number of times that a request will be retried for failures")
 
 	return f
@@ -86,8 +86,8 @@ func workerFlags(flagConf *config.Config) *pflag.FlagSet {
 	f := pflag.NewFlagSet("", pflag.ContinueOnError)
 
 	f.Int64Var(&flagConf.Worker.LogTailSize, "Worker.LogTailSize", flagConf.Worker.LogTailSize, "Max bytes to store for stdout/stderr")
-	f.DurationVar(&flagConf.Worker.LogUpdateRate, "Worker.LogUpdateRate", flagConf.Worker.LogUpdateRate, "How often to send stdout/stderr log updates")
-	f.DurationVar(&flagConf.Worker.PollingRate, "Worker.PollingRate", flagConf.Worker.PollingRate, "How often to poll for cancel signals")
+	f.Var(flagConf.Worker.LogUpdateRate, "Worker.LogUpdateRate", "How often to send stdout/stderr log updates")
+	f.Var(flagConf.Worker.PollingRate, "Worker.PollingRate", "How often to poll for cancel signals")
 	f.StringVar(&flagConf.Worker.WorkDir, "Worker.WorkDir", flagConf.Worker.WorkDir, "Working directory")
 	f.BoolVar(&flagConf.Worker.LeaveWorkDir, "Worker.LeaveWorkDir", flagConf.Worker.LeaveWorkDir, "Leave working directory after execution")
 
@@ -101,8 +101,8 @@ func nodeFlags(flagConf *config.Config) *pflag.FlagSet {
 	f.Uint32Var(&flagConf.Node.Resources.Cpus, "Node.Resources.Cpus", flagConf.Node.Resources.Cpus, "Cpus available to Node")
 	f.Float64Var(&flagConf.Node.Resources.RamGb, "Node.Resources.RamGb", flagConf.Node.Resources.RamGb, "Ram (GB) available to Node")
 	f.Float64Var(&flagConf.Node.Resources.DiskGb, "Node.Resources.DiskGb", flagConf.Node.Resources.DiskGb, "Free disk (GB) available to Node")
-	f.DurationVar(&flagConf.Node.Timeout, "Node.Timeout", flagConf.Node.Timeout, "Node timeout in seconds")
-	f.DurationVar(&flagConf.Node.UpdateRate, "Node.UpdateRate", flagConf.Node.UpdateRate, "Node update rate")
+	f.Var(flagConf.Node.Timeout, "Node.Timeout", "Node timeout in seconds")
+	f.Var(flagConf.Node.UpdateRate, "Node.UpdateRate", "Node update rate")
 	// TODO Metadata
 
 	return f
@@ -143,7 +143,7 @@ func dbFlags(flagConf *config.Config) *pflag.FlagSet {
 	// mongodb
 	f.StringSliceVar(&flagConf.MongoDB.Addrs, "MongoDB.Addrs", flagConf.MongoDB.Addrs, "Address of a MongoDB seed server. This flag can be used multiple times")
 	f.StringVar(&flagConf.MongoDB.Database, "MongoDB.Database", flagConf.MongoDB.Database, "Database name in MongoDB")
-	f.DurationVar(&flagConf.MongoDB.Timeout, "MongoDB.Timeout", flagConf.MongoDB.Timeout, "Timeout in seconds for initial connection and follow up operations")
+	f.Var(flagConf.MongoDB.Timeout, "MongoDB.Timeout", "Timeout in seconds for initial connection and follow up operations")
 
 	return f
 }
@@ -169,7 +169,7 @@ func storageFlags(flagConf *config.Config) *pflag.FlagSet {
 
 	// HTTP storage
 	f.BoolVar(&flagConf.HTTPStorage.Disabled, "HTTPStorage.Disabled", flagConf.HTTPStorage.Disabled, "Disable storage backend")
-	f.DurationVar(&flagConf.HTTPStorage.Timeout, "HTTPStorage.Timeout", flagConf.HTTPStorage.Timeout, "Timeout in seconds for request")
+	f.Var(flagConf.HTTPStorage.Timeout, "HTTPStorage.Timeout", "Timeout in seconds for request")
 
 	return f
 }
@@ -193,11 +193,11 @@ func computeFlags(flagConf *config.Config) *pflag.FlagSet {
 	f.StringVar(&flagConf.PBS.Template, "PBS.Template", flagConf.PBS.Template, "Path to submit template file")
 
 	// Scheduler
-	f.DurationVar(&flagConf.Scheduler.ScheduleRate, "Scheduler.ScheduleRate", flagConf.Scheduler.ScheduleRate, "How often to run a scheduler iteration")
+	f.Var(flagConf.Scheduler.ScheduleRate, "Scheduler.ScheduleRate", "How often to run a scheduler iteration")
 	f.IntVar(&flagConf.Scheduler.ScheduleChunk, "Scheduler.ScheduleChunk", flagConf.Scheduler.ScheduleChunk, "How many tasks to schedule in one iteration")
-	f.DurationVar(&flagConf.Scheduler.NodePingTimeout, "Scheduler.NodePingTimeout", flagConf.Scheduler.NodePingTimeout, "How long to wait for a node ping before marking it as dead")
-	f.DurationVar(&flagConf.Scheduler.NodeInitTimeout, "Scheduler.NodeInitTimeout", flagConf.Scheduler.NodeInitTimeout, "How long to wait for node initialization before marking it dead")
-	f.DurationVar(&flagConf.Scheduler.NodeDeadTimeout, "Scheduler.NodeDeadTimeout", flagConf.Scheduler.NodeDeadTimeout, "How long to wait before deleting a dead node from the DB")
+	f.Var(flagConf.Scheduler.NodePingTimeout, "Scheduler.NodePingTimeout", "How long to wait for a node ping before marking it as dead")
+	f.Var(flagConf.Scheduler.NodeInitTimeout, "Scheduler.NodeInitTimeout", "How long to wait for node initialization before marking it dead")
+	f.Var(flagConf.Scheduler.NodeDeadTimeout, "Scheduler.NodeDeadTimeout", "How long to wait before deleting a dead node from the DB")
 
 	// Slurm
 	f.StringVar(&flagConf.Slurm.Template, "Slurm.Template", flagConf.Slurm.Template, "Path to submit template file")
diff --git a/compute/batch/backend.go b/compute/batch/backend.go
index 1eb33fec3..dbc696fc5 100644
--- a/compute/batch/backend.go
+++ b/compute/batch/backend.go
@@ -151,7 +151,7 @@ func (b *Backend) Cancel(ctx context.Context, taskID string) error {
 // In this context a "FAILED" state is being used as a generic term that captures
 // one or more terminal states for the backend.
 func (b *Backend) reconcile(ctx context.Context) {
-	ticker := time.NewTicker(b.conf.ReconcileRate)
+	ticker := time.NewTicker(time.Duration(b.conf.ReconcileRate))
 
 	for {
 		select {
diff --git a/compute/htcondor/backend.go b/compute/htcondor/backend.go
index 27ef6f115..5d311400c 100644
--- a/compute/htcondor/backend.go
+++ b/compute/htcondor/backend.go
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ import (
 	"os/exec"
 	"regexp"
 	"strings"
+	"time"
 
 	"github.com/ohsu-comp-bio/funnel/compute"
 	"github.com/ohsu-comp-bio/funnel/config"
@@ -27,7 +28,7 @@ func NewBackend(ctx context.Context, conf config.Config, reader tes.ReadOnlyServ
 		Database:      reader,
 		ExtractID:     extractID,
 		MapStates:     mapStates,
-		ReconcileRate: conf.HTCondor.ReconcileRate,
+		ReconcileRate: time.Duration(conf.HTCondor.ReconcileRate),
 	}
 
 	if !conf.HTCondor.DisableReconciler {
diff --git a/compute/pbs/backend.go b/compute/pbs/backend.go
index 17962f0cc..3a92a4fdf 100644
--- a/compute/pbs/backend.go
+++ b/compute/pbs/backend.go
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ import (
 	"encoding/xml"
 	"fmt"
 	"os/exec"
+	"time"
 
 	"github.com/ohsu-comp-bio/funnel/compute"
 	"github.com/ohsu-comp-bio/funnel/config"
@@ -25,7 +26,7 @@ func NewBackend(ctx context.Context, conf config.Config, reader tes.ReadOnlyServ
 		Database:      reader,
 		ExtractID:     extractID,
 		MapStates:     mapStates,
-		ReconcileRate: conf.PBS.ReconcileRate,
+		ReconcileRate: time.Duration(conf.PBS.ReconcileRate),
 	}
 
 	if !conf.PBS.DisableReconciler {
diff --git a/compute/scheduler/node.go b/compute/scheduler/node.go
index 8fb1a5402..ee53ab132 100644
--- a/compute/scheduler/node.go
+++ b/compute/scheduler/node.go
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ func NewNodeProcess(ctx context.Context, conf config.Config, factory Worker, log
 		log.Error("error detecting resources", "error", derr)
 	}
 
-	timeout := util.NewIdleTimeout(conf.Node.Timeout)
+	timeout := util.NewIdleTimeout(time.Duration(conf.Node.Timeout))
 	state := NodeState_UNINITIALIZED
 
 	return &NodeProcess{
@@ -71,7 +71,7 @@ func (n *NodeProcess) Run(ctx context.Context) {
 	n.checkConnection(ctx)
 	n.sync(ctx)
 
-	ticker := time.NewTicker(n.conf.Node.UpdateRate)
+	ticker := time.NewTicker(time.Duration(n.conf.Node.UpdateRate))
 	defer ticker.Stop()
 
 	for {
@@ -182,7 +182,7 @@ func (n *NodeProcess) runTask(ctx context.Context, id string) {
 		// task cannot fully complete until it has successfully removed the
 		// assigned ID from the node database. this helps prevent tasks from
 		// running multiple times.
-		ticker := time.NewTicker(n.conf.Node.UpdateRate)
+		ticker := time.NewTicker(time.Duration(n.conf.Node.UpdateRate))
 		defer ticker.Stop()
 		for {
 			select {
diff --git a/compute/scheduler/node_util.go b/compute/scheduler/node_util.go
index ed0bac5b1..46de0cd6d 100644
--- a/compute/scheduler/node_util.go
+++ b/compute/scheduler/node_util.go
@@ -118,16 +118,16 @@ func UpdateNodeState(nodes []*Node, conf config.Scheduler) []*Node {
 		if node.State == NodeState_UNINITIALIZED || node.State == NodeState_INITIALIZING {
 
 			// The node is initializing, which has a more liberal timeout.
-			if d > conf.NodeInitTimeout {
+			if d > time.Duration(conf.NodeInitTimeout) {
 				// Looks like the node failed to initialize. Mark it dead
 				node.State = NodeState_DEAD
 			}
 
-		} else if node.State == NodeState_DEAD && d > conf.NodeDeadTimeout {
+		} else if node.State == NodeState_DEAD && d > time.Duration(conf.NodeDeadTimeout) {
 			// The node has been dead for long enough.
 			node.State = NodeState_GONE
 
-		} else if d > conf.NodePingTimeout {
+		} else if d > time.Duration(conf.NodePingTimeout) {
 			// The node hasn't pinged in awhile, mark it dead.
 			node.State = NodeState_DEAD
 		}
diff --git a/compute/scheduler/scheduler.go b/compute/scheduler/scheduler.go
index aa9cae1a6..2d9d93190 100644
--- a/compute/scheduler/scheduler.go
+++ b/compute/scheduler/scheduler.go
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ type Scheduler struct {
 // request the the configured backend schedule them, and
 // act on offers made by the backend.
 func (s *Scheduler) Run(ctx context.Context) error {
-	ticker := time.NewTicker(s.Conf.ScheduleRate)
+	ticker := time.NewTicker(time.Duration(s.Conf.ScheduleRate))
 	for {
 		select {
 		case <-ctx.Done():
diff --git a/compute/slurm/backend.go b/compute/slurm/backend.go
index 1d021982b..c69a98453 100644
--- a/compute/slurm/backend.go
+++ b/compute/slurm/backend.go
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ import (
 	"os/exec"
 	"regexp"
 	"strings"
+	"time"
 
 	"github.com/ohsu-comp-bio/funnel/compute"
 	"github.com/ohsu-comp-bio/funnel/config"
@@ -28,7 +29,7 @@ func NewBackend(ctx context.Context, conf config.Config, reader tes.ReadOnlyServ
 		Database:      reader,
 		ExtractID:     extractID,
 		MapStates:     mapStates,
-		ReconcileRate: conf.Slurm.ReconcileRate,
+		ReconcileRate: time.Duration(conf.Slurm.ReconcileRate),
 	}
 
 	if !conf.Slurm.DisableReconciler {
diff --git a/config/config.go b/config/config.go
index 7bcebb3f3..8edaea27d 100644
--- a/config/config.go
+++ b/config/config.go
@@ -3,7 +3,6 @@ package config
 
 import (
 	"os"
-	"time"
 
 	"github.com/ohsu-comp-bio/funnel/logger"
 )
@@ -57,7 +56,7 @@ type Server struct {
 	// The timeout to use for making RPC client connections in nanoseconds
 	// This timeout is Only enforced when used in conjunction with the
 	// grpc.WithBlock dial option.
-	RPCClientTimeout time.Duration
+	RPCClientTimeout Duration
 	// The maximum number of times that a request will be retried for failures.
 	// Time between retries follows an exponential backoff starting at 5 seconds
 	// up to 1 minute
@@ -88,15 +87,15 @@ func (c *Server) RPCAddress() string {
 // Scheduler contains funnel's basic scheduler configuration.
 type Scheduler struct {
 	// How often to run a scheduler iteration.
-	ScheduleRate time.Duration
+	ScheduleRate Duration
 	// How many tasks to schedule in one iteration.
 	ScheduleChunk int
 	// How long to wait for a node ping before marking it as dead
-	NodePingTimeout time.Duration
+	NodePingTimeout Duration
 	// How long to wait for node initialization before marking it dead
-	NodeInitTimeout time.Duration
+	NodeInitTimeout Duration
 	// How long to wait before deleting a dead node from the DB.
-	NodeDeadTimeout time.Duration
+	NodeDeadTimeout Duration
 }
 
 // Node contains the configuration for a node. Nodes track available resources
@@ -112,9 +111,9 @@ type Node struct {
 	}
 	// If the node has been idle for longer than the timeout, it will shut down.
 	// -1 means there is no timeout. 0 means timeout immediately after the first task.
-	Timeout time.Duration
+	Timeout Duration
 	// How often the node sends update requests to the server.
-	UpdateRate time.Duration
+	UpdateRate Duration
 	Metadata   map[string]string
 }
 
@@ -123,11 +122,11 @@ type Worker struct {
 	// Directory to write task files to
 	WorkDir string
 	// How often the worker should poll for cancel signals
-	PollingRate time.Duration
+	PollingRate Duration
 	// How often to update stdout/stderr log fields.
 	// Setting this to 0 will result in these fields being updated a single time
 	// after the executor exits.
-	LogUpdateRate time.Duration
+	LogUpdateRate Duration
 	// Max bytes of stdout/stderr to store in the database.
 	// Setting this to 0 turns off stdout/stderr logging.
 	LogTailSize int64
@@ -145,7 +144,7 @@ type HPCBackend struct {
 	DisableReconciler bool
 	// ReconcileRate is how often the compute backend compares states in Funnel's backend
 	// to those reported by the backend
-	ReconcileRate time.Duration
+	ReconcileRate Duration
 	Template      string
 }
 
@@ -164,7 +163,7 @@ type MongoDB struct {
 	// first connecting and on follow up operations in the session. If
 	// timeout is zero, the call may block forever waiting for a connection
 	// to be established.
-	Timeout time.Duration
+	Timeout Duration
 	// Username and Password inform the credentials for the initial authentication
 	// done on the database defined by the Database field.
 	Username string
@@ -222,7 +221,7 @@ type AWSBatch struct {
 	DisableReconciler bool
 	// ReconcileRate is how often the compute backend compares states in Funnel's backend
 	// to those reported by AWS Batch
-	ReconcileRate time.Duration
+	ReconcileRate Duration
 	AWSConfig
 }
 
@@ -326,7 +325,7 @@ func (s SwiftStorage) Valid() bool {
 type HTTPStorage struct {
 	Disabled bool
 	// Timeout duration for http GET calls
-	Timeout time.Duration
+	Timeout Duration
 }
 
 // Valid validates the HTTPStorage configuration.
diff --git a/config/default-config.yaml b/config/default-config.yaml
index e75a69d31..9a7b54fcd 100644
--- a/config/default-config.yaml
+++ b/config/default-config.yaml
@@ -39,8 +39,7 @@ Server:
   DisableHTTPCache: true
 
   # RPC client connection timeout.
-  # In nanoseconds.
-  RPCClientTimeout: 60000000000 # 30 seconds
+  RPCClientTimeout: 60s
 
   # The maximum number of times that a request will be retried for failures.
   # Time between retries follows an exponential backoff starting at 5 seconds
@@ -51,16 +50,13 @@ Server:
 # The scheduler is used for the Manual compute backend. 
 Scheduler:
   # How often to run a scheduler iteration.
-  # In nanoseconds.
-  ScheduleRate: 1000000000 # 1 second
+  ScheduleRate: 1s
   # How many tasks to schedule in one iteration.
   ScheduleChunk: 10
   # How long to wait between updates before marking a node dead.
-  # In nanoseconds.
-  NodePingTimeout: 60000000000 # 1 minute
+  NodePingTimeout: 1m
   # How long to wait for a node to start, before marking the node dead.
-  # In nanoseconds.
-  NodeInitTimeout: 300000000000 # 5 minutes
+  NodeInitTimeout: 5m
 
 Node:
   # If empty, a node ID will be automatically generated.
@@ -68,7 +64,7 @@ Node:
 
   # If the node has been idle for longer than the timeout, it will shut down.
   # -1 means there is no timeout. 0 means timeout immediately after the first task.
-  Timeout: -1
+  Timeout: -1s
 
   # A Node will automatically try to detect what resources are available to it. 
   # Defining Resources in the Node configuration overrides this behavior.
@@ -84,8 +80,7 @@ Node:
 
   # For low-level tuning.
   # How often to sync with the Funnel server.
-  # In nanoseconds.
-  UpdateRate: 5000000000 # 5 seconds
+  UpdateRate: 5s
 
 Worker:
   # Files created during processing will be written in this directory.
@@ -93,15 +88,13 @@ Worker:
 
   # For low-level tuning.
   # How often to poll for cancel signals
-  # In nanoseconds.
-  PollingRate: 5000000000 # 5 seconds
+  PollingRate: 5s
 
   # For low-level tuning.
   # How often to send stdout/err task log updates to the Funnel server.
   # Setting this to 0 will result in these fields being updated a single time
   # after the executor exits.
-  # In nanoseconds.
-  LogUpdateRate: 5000000000 # 5 seconds
+  LogUpdateRate: 5s
 
   # Max bytes to store for stdout/err in the task log.
   LogTailSize: 10000 # 10 KB
@@ -152,7 +145,7 @@ MongoDB:
   # first connecting and on follow up operations in the session. If
   # timeout is zero, the call may block forever waiting for a connection
   # to be established.
-  Timeout: 300000000000 # 5 minutes
+  Timeout: 5m
   # Username and Password inform the credentials for the initial authentication
   # done on the database defined by the Database field.
   Username: ""
@@ -174,7 +167,7 @@ HTCondor:
   DisableReconciler: true
   # ReconcileRate is how often the compute backend compares states in Funnel's backend
   # to those reported by the backend
-  ReconcileRate: 1800000000000 #  30 minutes
+  ReconcileRate: 30m
   Template: |
     universe = vanilla
     getenv = True
@@ -204,7 +197,7 @@ PBS:
   DisableReconciler: true
   # ReconcileRate is how often the compute backend compares states in Funnel's backend
   # to those reported by the backend
-  ReconcileRate: 1800000000000 #  30 minutes
+  ReconcileRate: 30m
   Template: |
     #!bin/bash
     #PBS -N {{.NodeId}}
@@ -248,7 +241,7 @@ Slurm:
   DisableReconciler: true
   # ReconcileRate is how often the compute backend compares states in Funnel's backend
   # to those reported by the backend
-  ReconcileRate: 1800000000000 #  30 minutes
+  ReconcileRate: 30m
   Template: |
     #!/bin/bash
     #SBATCH --job-name {{.NodeId}}
@@ -274,7 +267,7 @@ AWSBatch:
   DisableReconciler: true
   # ReconcileRate is how often the compute backend compares states in Funnel's backend
   # to those reported by AWS Batch
-  ReconcileRate: 1800000000000 #  30 minutes
+  ReconcileRate: 30m
   # JobDefinition can be either a name or the Amazon Resource Name (ARN).
   JobDefinition: "funnel-job-def"
   # JobQueue can be either a name or the Amazon Resource Name (ARN).
@@ -300,8 +293,7 @@ LocalStorage:
 # HTTPStorage is used to download public files on the web via a GET request.
 HTTPStorage:
   # Timeout for http(s) GET requests.
-  # In nanoseconds.
-  Timeout: 30000000000 # 30 seconds
+  Timeout: 30s
 
 AmazonS3:
   Disabled: false
diff --git a/config/default.go b/config/default.go
index cac945d2a..987e52c1b 100644
--- a/config/default.go
+++ b/config/default.go
@@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ func DefaultConfig() Config {
 		RPCPort:             "9090",
 		ServiceName:         "Funnel",
 		DisableHTTPCache:    true,
-		RPCClientTimeout:    time.Second * 60,
+		RPCClientTimeout:    Duration(time.Second * 60),
 		RPCClientMaxRetries: 10,
 	}
 
@@ -40,21 +40,21 @@ func DefaultConfig() Config {
 		// funnel components
 		Server: server,
 		Scheduler: Scheduler{
-			ScheduleRate:    time.Second,
+			ScheduleRate:    Duration(time.Second),
 			ScheduleChunk:   10,
-			NodePingTimeout: time.Minute,
-			NodeInitTimeout: time.Minute * 5,
-			NodeDeadTimeout: time.Minute * 5,
+			NodePingTimeout: Duration(time.Minute),
+			NodeInitTimeout: Duration(time.Minute * 5),
+			NodeDeadTimeout: Duration(time.Minute * 5),
 		},
 		Node: Node{
 			Timeout:    -1,
-			UpdateRate: time.Second * 5,
+			UpdateRate: Duration(time.Second * 5),
 			Metadata:   map[string]string{},
 		},
 		Worker: Worker{
 			WorkDir:       workDir,
-			PollingRate:   time.Second * 5,
-			LogUpdateRate: time.Second * 5,
+			PollingRate:   Duration(time.Second * 5),
+			LogUpdateRate: Duration(time.Second * 5),
 			LogTailSize:   10000,
 		},
 		Logger: logger.DefaultConfig(),
@@ -71,7 +71,7 @@ func DefaultConfig() Config {
 		},
 		MongoDB: MongoDB{
 			Addrs:    []string{"localhost"},
-			Timeout:  time.Minute * 5,
+			Timeout:  Duration(time.Minute * 5),
 			Database: "funnel",
 		},
 		Kafka: Kafka{
@@ -82,7 +82,7 @@ func DefaultConfig() Config {
 			AllowedDirs: allowedDirs,
 		},
 		HTTPStorage: HTTPStorage{
-			Timeout: time.Second * 60,
+			Timeout: Duration(time.Second * 60),
 		},
 		AmazonS3: AmazonS3Storage{
 			AWSConfig: AWSConfig{
@@ -95,7 +95,7 @@ func DefaultConfig() Config {
 	}
 
 	// compute
-	reconcile := time.Minute * 10
+	reconcile := Duration(time.Minute * 10)
 
 	htcondorTemplate, _ := intern.Asset("config/htcondor-template.txt")
 	c.HTCondor.Template = string(htcondorTemplate)
diff --git a/config/duration.go b/config/duration.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..fcfb67152
--- /dev/null
+++ b/config/duration.go
@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+package config
+
+import (
+	"time"
+)
+
+// Duration is a wrapper type for time.Duration which provides human-friendly
+// text (un)marshaling.
+// See https://github.com/golang/go/issues/16039
+type Duration time.Duration
+
+// String returns the string representation of the duration.
+func (d Duration) String() string {
+	return time.Duration(d).String()
+}
+
+// UnmarshalText parses text into a duration value.
+func (d *Duration) UnmarshalText(text []byte) error {
+	// Ignore if there is no value set.
+	if len(text) == 0 {
+		return nil
+	}
+
+	// Otherwise parse as a duration formatted string.
+	duration, err := time.ParseDuration(string(text))
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+
+	// Set duration and return.
+	*d = Duration(duration)
+	return nil
+}
+
+// MarshalText converts a duration to text.
+func (d Duration) MarshalText() (text []byte, err error) {
+	return []byte(d.String()), nil
+}
+
+// Set sets the duration from the given string.
+// Implements the pflag.Value interface.
+func (d Duration) Set(raw string) error {
+	return d.UnmarshalText([]byte(raw))
+}
+
+// Type returns the name of this type.
+// Implements the pflag.Value interface.
+func (d Duration) Type() string {
+	return "duration"
+}
diff --git a/database/mongodb/new.go b/database/mongodb/new.go
index 455533357..63711bb49 100644
--- a/database/mongodb/new.go
+++ b/database/mongodb/new.go
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ package mongodb
 
 import (
 	"fmt"
+	"time"
 
 	"github.com/ohsu-comp-bio/funnel/config"
 	"gopkg.in/mgo.v2"
@@ -23,7 +24,7 @@ func NewMongoDB(conf config.MongoDB) (*MongoDB, error) {
 		Username: conf.Username,
 		Password: conf.Password,
 		Database: conf.Database,
-		Timeout:  conf.Timeout,
+		Timeout:  time.Duration(conf.Timeout),
 		// DialServer: func(addr *mgo.ServerAddr) (net.Conn, error) {
 		// 	return tls.Dial("tcp", addr.String(), &tls.Config{})
 		// },
diff --git a/storage/http.go b/storage/http.go
index d7764938d..11d66e732 100644
--- a/storage/http.go
+++ b/storage/http.go
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import (
 	"net/http"
 	"os"
 	"strings"
+	"time"
 
 	"github.com/ohsu-comp-bio/funnel/config"
 	"github.com/ohsu-comp-bio/funnel/tes"
@@ -21,7 +22,7 @@ type HTTPBackend struct {
 // NewHTTPBackend creates a new HTTPBackend instance.
 func NewHTTPBackend(conf config.HTTPStorage) (*HTTPBackend, error) {
 	client := &http.Client{
-		Timeout: conf.Timeout,
+		Timeout: time.Duration(conf.Timeout),
 	}
 	return &HTTPBackend{client}, nil
 }
diff --git a/util/rpc/rpc.go b/util/rpc/rpc.go
index 4fc7e811c..61ba60a01 100644
--- a/util/rpc/rpc.go
+++ b/util/rpc/rpc.go
@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ func (c *loginCreds) RequireTransportSecurity() bool {
 
 // Dial returns a new gRPC ClientConn with some default dial and call options set
 func Dial(pctx context.Context, conf config.Server, opts ...grpc.DialOption) (*grpc.ClientConn, error) {
-	ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(pctx, conf.RPCClientTimeout)
+	ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(pctx, time.Duration(conf.RPCClientTimeout))
 	defer cancel()
 
 	defaultOpts := []grpc.DialOption{
diff --git a/website/content/docs/compute/deployment.md b/website/content/docs/compute/deployment.md
index e3fc31d83..b07c713b1 100644
--- a/website/content/docs/compute/deployment.md
+++ b/website/content/docs/compute/deployment.md
@@ -37,19 +37,16 @@ Compute: manual
 
 Scheduler:
   # How often to run a scheduler iteration.
-  # In nanoseconds.
-  ScheduleRate: 1000000000 # 1 second
+  ScheduleRate: 1s
 
   # How many tasks to schedule in one iteration.
   ScheduleChunk: 10
 
   # How long to wait between updates before marking a node dead.
-  # In nanoseconds.
-  NodePingTimeout: 60000000000 # 1 minute
+  NodePingTimeout: 1m
 
   # How long to wait for a node to start, before marking the node dead.
-  # In nanoseconds.
-  NodeInitTimeout: 300000000000 # 5 minutes
+  NodeInitTimeout: 5m
 
 
 Node:
@@ -58,7 +55,7 @@ Node:
 
   # If the node has been idle for longer than the timeout, it will shut down.
   # -1 means there is no timeout. 0 means timeout immediately after the first task.
-  Timeout: -1
+  Timeout: -1s
 
   # A Node will automatically try to detect what resources are available to it. 
   # Defining Resources in the Node configuration overrides this behavior.
@@ -72,8 +69,7 @@ Node:
 
   # For low-level tuning.
   # How often to sync with the Funnel server.
-  # In nanoseconds.
-  UpdateRate: 5000000000 # 5 seconds
+  UpdateRate: 5s
 
 Logger:
   # Logging levels: debug, info, error
@@ -81,7 +77,3 @@ Logger:
   # Write logs to this path. If empty, logs are written to stderr.
   OutputFile: ""
 ```
-
-### Known issues
-
-The config uses nanoseconds for duration values. See [issue #342](https://github.com/ohsu-comp-bio/funnel/issues/342).
diff --git a/website/content/docs/storage/http.md b/website/content/docs/storage/http.md
index 2eb7f19c7..3bbc29c35 100644
--- a/website/content/docs/storage/http.md
+++ b/website/content/docs/storage/http.md
@@ -18,8 +18,7 @@ worker config:
 HTTPStorage:
   Disabled: false
   # Timeout for http(s) GET requests.
-  # In nanoseconds.
-  Timeout: 60000000000 # 60 seconds
+  Timeout: 30s
 ```
 
 ### Example task
diff --git a/worker/step.go b/worker/step.go
index e9174c56f..52af3ec0a 100644
--- a/worker/step.go
+++ b/worker/step.go
@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@ func (s *stepWorker) Run(ctx context.Context) error {
 	// Tail the stdout/err log streams.
 	if s.Conf.LogTailSize > 0 {
 		if s.Conf.LogUpdateRate > 0 {
-			stdout, stderr = s.Event.StreamLogTail(subctx, s.Conf.LogTailSize, s.Conf.LogUpdateRate)
+			stdout, stderr = s.Event.StreamLogTail(subctx, s.Conf.LogTailSize, time.Duration(s.Conf.LogUpdateRate))
 		} else {
 			stdout, stderr = s.Event.LogTail(subctx, s.Conf.LogTailSize)
 		}
diff --git a/worker/worker.go b/worker/worker.go
index 3979b3477..559eaf9a0 100644
--- a/worker/worker.go
+++ b/worker/worker.go
@@ -336,7 +336,7 @@ func (r *DefaultWorker) pollForCancel(pctx context.Context, taskID string, cance
 	// Start a goroutine that polls the server to watch for a canceled state.
 	// If a cancel state is found, "taskctx" is canceled.
 	go func() {
-		ticker := time.NewTicker(r.Conf.PollingRate)
+		ticker := time.NewTicker(time.Duration(r.Conf.PollingRate))
 		defer ticker.Stop()
 
 		for {